The use of Internet by math and science teachers

John M. Rogan April 1995
Paper presented at the American Educational Research Association convention.

Introduction
The Internet and The Information Super Highway have become familiar buzz words.
In some circles, access to the resources of the Internet has become synonymous with
educational reform. The purpose of this paper is to explore the broad questions,
"Does such access deliver the anticipated renewal of teaching and learning? If so,
under what conditions? and to what degree?"

In 1993, the Annenberg/CPB Math and Science Project funded five groups with the
general aim of using telecommunications and the Internet to foster the renewal of math
and science education in rural schools. The US West Foundation provided half the
funding for the four Western projects. The five projects jointly represent one of the
few initiatives to explicitly link reform in math and science education with the use of
telecommunications. The extent to which these projects have succeeded in reaching
this goal during the first year of operation will be explored in this paper.

The Projects
The five funded projects are described below.

a) Teacher On-line Projects
Teacher On-line Projects is designed to help rural elementary and secondary
educators bring a new world to their classrooms through telecomputing. The ten sites
include six from Minnesota, and one from Iowa, North Dakota, Michigan and
Wisconsin; Teacher On-line Projects is designed to develop on-line computer
communication services to support the participating classrooms (teachers and
students) in the application of problem-solving skills for community-based projects to
improve their mathematics and science skills. From working with a local Wildlife
refuge to develop to utilize this unique wildlife habitat as a means of economic
development to partnering with a city council to identify success factors for
maintaining retail business on main street. Each school community has established a
team of one math teacher, one science teacher, and one community member, to
implement a project that will use national mathematics and science standards to study
a local community issue.

As part of their participation each team will receive training and support as they guide
their students in identifying a community issue and designing the solution to the issue.

Students will work as mathematicians and scientists using appropriate techniques and
skills to resolve issues. Teams will communicate with other teams, share information,
contact mathematics and science education experts, interact with researchers, and
search for information through a variety of on-line resources through the Internet.

The five objects for Teacher on line Project are:
* Students, guided by their math and science teachers, will design a solution to an
identified community problem.
* Students and teachers in the Teacher On-line Projects will access and share
information with others through a variety of networks connected through Internet.
* Math and science teachers from rural communities will belong to a "virtual
community" with others working on similar projects to share experiences, teaching
strategies, and project results.
* Students will work toward achieving selected goals of the math and science
standards, identified with their teachers as they apply problem solving techniques to
solve a community-based problem.
* Document and disseminate the process for providing access to appropriate
resources and teaching strategies for rural math and science teachers.

b) Creating Connections: Rural Teachers and the Internet

Creating Connections is a project designed to provide an opportunity to rural teachers
of math and science to learn to use the world-wide Internet network as both a
professional development and a curricular tool.

This project enables teachers who are widely dispersed to participate in a program
which offers on-going support following the initial workshop. This presentation will
explore the effectiveness of the workshop for short term goals as well as the
effectiveness of the on-going support via telecommunications to meet longer range
goals. The paper contains a report on the activity of the teachers and their response to
the availability of on-going support and the role which that support plays in the
teachers' mastery of the tool.

c) Tennessee Valley Project
Designed to empower teachers of children in grades 4, 5, and 6 to improve their
science teaching by changing the way they teach science, partnering with practicing
scientists, and tapping the information and communication resources of Internet, the
Tennessee Valley Project will create collaborative research opportunities for teachers,
practicing scientists, and higher education faculty on how best to implement strategies
of reform through working partnerships.

Through the project, teachers will translate theories and strategies of reform in science
education into classroom practice by synthesizing information and resources from six
sources:

1. Science, Technology, Society (STS) techniques and strategies;
2. assessment techniques which reflect the new thinking about assessment;
3. state mandated curriculum guidelines;
4. National Science Education Standards currently being revised by the National
Committee on Science Education Standards and Assessment;
5. Internet communication facilities and instructional resources;
6. partnerships with practicing scientists to create instructional activities modeled on
the work of the scientist but designed for children in grades 4, 5, and 6.

d) Reach for the Sky
The goals of Reach for the Sky are:
* Providing teachers access to telecomputing equipment, sustainable connectivity,
training, and technical support.
* Linking teachers to the Internet science/mathematics resources and data bases.
* Networking teachers with local, national, and global communities of peers and
experts.
* Assisting teachers to create and conduct telecurricular units and to mentor other
teachers in the development and implementation of similar units.
* Showcasing teacher innovations in the use of the Internet and telecomputing which
provide role models of educational renewal.

During the first year of the project, 22 teachers of grades 3-12 with special interest in
math and science, are receiving training in the use of the Internet and in the creation
and use of telecurricular units. In the second year, these teachers will act as mentors
for an additional 80 teachers who will receive all training online. After that it is
expected that an unlimited number of teachers will be able to emulate the project
model using the disseminated project materials with the assistance of online mentors.

e) Rural Community Alliance for Enhancing Science and Math Education
The primary goals of this project are to:
* Provide teachers and schools with the tools to integrate telecomputing resources
into their science and math curriculum.
* Address issues of classroom reform.
* Gain the community support which is needed to provide funding for change.

In order to accomplish these goals trainers will utilize an interactive multi-media
training package that will present models for using online telecomputing resources,
leading to greater opportunities for problem solving and the development of critical
thinking skills in math and science.

The Questions
Following the description of each project, representatives of the projects will form a
panel and the questions below will be posed and discussed:

1. What happens when teachers who have never been on the Internet before are first
given access? What are the frustrations and the triumphs? Are there one or more
identifiable barriers to be overcome? Does the type of access make any difference?

2. What kind of math/science resources were found on the Internet? How easy was it
to find and acquire these resources? Was the time spent perceived to be worthwhile?
Which of the resources was perceived as being most useful?

3. Can the resources found on the Internet, or access to the Internet in general, result
in better classroom practice? In which ways does access to the Internet change ways
in which teachers teach and learners learn?

Methodology and Results
The methodology used by each of the five projects to collect data, and the results of
the data collection will be presented in five separate sections. The North West
Regional Educational Laboratories won the contract from Anneberg/CPB to be the
external evaluator of the five projects. Some of the data presented were collected as
part of the external evaluation. In addition, project collected their own data, especially
in areas that were unique to each project.

Reach for the Sky
Methodology
The data presented in this section were collected using questionnaires, interviews,
comments made online, a focus group discussion and classroom observations. During
February 1995, a questionnaire devised by the external evaluator, Dr. Kim Yap of
NWREL, was answered by 19 of the 22 Reach for the Sky teachers. In the same
month, 13 of the teachers met in Helena, Montana, the State capitol, to participate in
a technology fair at the Capitol building, and to meet as a project.

During this time, all teachers met with the internal evaluator for a 15 minute interview.
Teachers not attending the Helena meeting were subsequently interviewed by phone.
Towards the end of February, the internal evaluator accompanied an external
evaluator from NWREL on an onsite visit at two of the Reach for the Sky schools,
Garfield School in Lewistown and the Winifred School, some forty miles north of
Lewistown. During the visits, four classrooms were observed and an in depth
interview was held with each of the four teachers. On the afternoon of 2/22, the
external examiner facilitated a focus group discussion which included teachers (both
part of the project and outside of it), administrators, students, parents, and community
members.

Results
1. What happens when teachers who have never been on the Internet before are first
given access? What are the frustrations and the triumphs? Are there one or more
identifiable barriers to be overcome? Does the type of access make any difference?

Teachers in the Reach for the Sky Project spoke with feeling about both the
frustrations and the triumphs of their experience with the Internet. One teacher put it,
"The Internet is 45% frustration, 45% not being connected and 10% exhilaration."
Some of the triumphs will be examined first, followed by the frustrations.

One overwhelming theme, which was repeated again and again, was the exhilarating
experience of having access to unlimited information and resources. Some likened it to
a large library to which they now had instant recourse, but the access is available
without having to leave one's home. The access provided, for some, new avenues of
learning and possibilities which previously had not even been imagined. The scope and
variety of what is available proved to be a recurring sub-theme during the interviews.
Some said that they enjoyed 'surfing the Internet' just for the fun is seeing what would
turn up next. For others, just knowing it was there, made a psychological difference.

A second major theme to emerge from the responses of teachers was the overcoming
of isolation and the feeling of being part of a global community. A phrase which
reoccurred with some regularity was the enjoyment of "meeting new people". Specific
contacts with peers, such as other middle school teachers, and with experts were
mentioned. The latter category included seeking information from experts on diverse
topics such as subways, the Loch Ness monster, adult education programs, dessert
plants, and hantavirus pellets. Also mentioned as part of this theme was the
opportunity to partake in some global telecommunications projects such as Live from
the Antarctica, MayaQuest, Geogame and Where is Roger.

A third theme, which was diffused throughout most of the responses was one of
excitement and renewal. The opportunities and possibilities were seen to be both
exciting and overwhelming, but for all that much appreciated. The theme of "new
approaches, new ideas, new resources" was a frequently reoccurring one.

On the other hand, the opportunities provided by access to the Internet were not
without some frustration. As before, various themes emerged, shaped in part by the
availability of resources at the school and the kind of access provided.

Time emerged as the number one source of frustration. Some mentioned the time that
it took to master some of the skills needed to access the Internet. Almost all
commented on how they wished there were more hours in a day to acquire resources
and to use them. An important sub-theme to emerge at this point was the existing
curriculum. Teachers are already trying to cope with a full curriculum. Invariably, time
spent on some kind of telecurricular activity, even one linked to the existing
curriculum, is going to take time from what was done before. Priorities will need to be
decided. In the meantime, the pioneering teachers are trying to add new activities and
skills to what is already in place. Often times, the resources obtained cannot be
effectively used in the classroom without developing some kind of curriculum package
to support their use. Again, this takes time. As fun as it is, the Internet can be a great
waster of time. Some teachers spoke of hours spent trying to track down some
resource because its location involved a lot of guess work. Others subscribed to a
listserv, only to be overwhelmed by the volume of mail which suddenly arrived in their
mail boxes.

Time management and discipline became important skills to be learned. Teachers had
to make time available on a weekly basis, usually at set times, and learn to neither
skimp on or exceed what was allocated. Some spoke of the adjustments they had to
make in their lifestyles and family commitments.

Second, frustrations with the Internet itself emerged as a substantive theme. Basically,
the Internet is not user-friendly and this was pointed out on a number of occasions.
More specifically, the Internet is not reliable. If access is to be part of a lesson, there
is no guarantee that a connection will be made. Frequently, access to a specific site is
denied because it is heavily used. Other times, when access is gained, a particular
resource is not available, or cannot be accessed. As one teacher put it, "There is so
much to weed out." Teachers spoke of having to wade through messages on the
listservs to glean out the small fraction of what was useful. Another source of
frustration was experienced when 'experts' were approached and failed to answer or
there was some other form of lack of response. Frustrations in this area were
compounded by the lack of time. Some allocated a precious hour to find a particular
resource and then came up empty handed. Either source of frustration by itself might
have been acceptable, but together they became a major aggravation.

Third, Reach for the Sky has provided access to the Internet using a modem and long
distance phone lines. This access mode does have its limitations. Some would have
liked a graphic interface, with point and click capabilities. However, during the first
year of the project, this was not feasible. This type of access also raised the question
of cost. Those using long distance phone lines to access the Internet found that the
cost of being online could be rather prohibitive. Many were shocked at their August
and September phone bills! The offline reader, which is the main telecommunication
mode advocated by the Project does keep phone costs low, but on the other hand
does not permit browsing of the Internet. Many teachers found themselves on the
outside looking in when it came to direct resource acquisition. They had begun to
glimpse what was out there for them to explore, but online costs limited what they
could actually experience and download.

The fourth source of frustration is also cost related. As teachers began to realize the
potential of the Internet and to experience learning modes hitherto unknown to them,
they began to visualize new ways in which their students might begin to learn.
However, in some cases these dreams floundered because of the reality of the
classroom situation. In the worst cases, the classrooms were devoid of computers.
Others did have a computer, but no modem or phone line. The gap between potential
and actual learning in the classroom has become a source of frustration for a number
of teachers. Some have been successful in getting their colleagues and administration
to glimpse their vision and to start providing support in the form of hardware. Others
have become more isolated from their colleagues, and are thinking of moving to
technologically greener pastures.

2. What kind of math/science resources were found on the Internet? How easy was it
to find and acquire these resources? Was the time spent perceived to be worthwhile?
Which of the resources was perceived as being most useful?

Reach for the Sky teachers tended to fall into one of two groups. The one group
consisted of teachers who had spent a lot of time searching the Internet for resources,
and were by and large pleased with what they had found. The other group did not
spend much time on searching for or accessing resources, but rather used the Internet
to participate in telecurricular activities and thus spent time on collecting, sharing and
analyzing data. The two groups tended to be somewhat exclusive of each other,
suggesting that time constraints forced teachers to set priorities.

Teachers who did invest time in searching the Internet for resources were pleased
with what they had found, and felt that the investment was worthwhile. A list of
resources cited is categorized and listed below. Numbers in parenthesis indicate how
often a particular resource was cited. The complete data from the questionnaires is
given in Appendix I.

Programs
Live From Antarctica - Math/Science/Social Studies
Interdisciplinary unit involving experts in the field and studying Antarctica.

Where is Roger? - Tracking Roger through the Eastern Hemisphere, we spent the last
semester tracking him through Australia and have contacted other schools around the
world who were also on the list. (2)

Geogame - A geography activity for Middle School kids. (2)

Mayaquest - Students being able to interact with experts online in Central America
seeking answers as to why the Maya civilizations have disappeared. We are going to
compare this ancient civilization to other ancient civilizations we've already studied in
Europe. (2)

The Geometry Forum through which we get a Problem of the Week and a Project of
the Month for the class or individuals to work on. The results are written and then
returned to the forum. (2)

Other
Civil war letters
Shakespeare
Drama plays for elementary students
Santa
Firenet

3. Can the resources found on the Internet, or access to the Internet in general, result
in better classroom practice? In which ways does access to the Internet change ways
in which teachers teach and learners learn?

Ultimately, the worth of experimental projects like Reach for the Sky will need to be
judged in terms of differences they make to the teaching and learning processes.
Renewal in math and science education eventually needs to play out in the classroom
if the project is to have any impact. Data gathered to date is based on self reported
changes, gathered both by means of a questionnaire and an interview. Furthermore,
four classrooms have been observed. Based on this data, Reach for the Sky teachers
fall into two groups. The first and larger group reported some significant, in their
estimation, changes to their teaching practice. The second group said that they
recognized the potential for teaching differently, they were proceeding with caution
and were still learning themselves. This second group envisaged making some kind of
change to their teaching in the near future. Both changes to the way in which teachers
teach and students learn were reported in the interviews. The changes to teaching
styles and methods will be dealt with first.

A major difference to the way in which lessons are taught appears to be the use of
resources which were not available previously.

"I have new ideas of how students can gain information and how to present it to other
students."

Resources that were mentioned included images and textual information. While the
former tended to be used as visual aids, and hence viewed by the students passively,
the latter tended to be incorporated by the students in a more active manner in reports
and discussions. The availability of these resources, in some instances, had a major
impact on the content taught. For example, the availability of images from space led to
a greater emphasis on this topic. Those teachers who were involved in
telecollaborative activities during the Fall of 1994 reported on the data from other
schools as an important resource. Finally programs such as Live from the Antarctica,
Where is Roger?, and Geogame, where used, appeared to have made a major impact
on classroom teaching.

A second major theme to emerge was that of personal growth, and more specifically
the ability to overcome isolation and to incorporate more diversity in lessons taught.
As one teacher put it, "I am more of a global person and very aware of what's going
on in the rest of the world. I try to communicate that to my students so they realize
what may be affecting their new found friends on different continents. We always try
to find commonalities on all parts of the globe. I am much more aware as a person."

Personal growth was a theme touched on by a number of those interviewed.
Specifically, teachers were able to consult scientists and other teachers for ideas and
advice. Perhaps more importantly, they were able to bring the outside world into their
own classrooms. Some teachers allowed their students to follow the activities of
scientists from all over the world working in the Antarctica, and to pose questions to
them. Others had the opportunity to follow Roger across Australia. Science,
geography, math, social studies and writing could all be incorporated into accounts of
Roger's travels. One teacher capitalized on the fact that Roger declined to climb a
rock sacred to the aboriginal people of Australia to initiate a discussion on sensitivity
to cultural beliefs of others. Yet another way in which isolation was overcome was the
provision of opportunities of students to communicate directly with other students in
other parts of the country or world. In one school, each student was linked with a
student teacher in a university methods course. This cross-age linkage proved to be
exciting and beneficial to both groups. The university students discovered how much
they had to learn about explaining math concepts using text only. Friendships were
established that extended beyond the end of the course itself.

Third, some teachers reported that a major change was taking place in the way in
which they taught. Lesson were becoming more student centered and less teacher
directed.
"I have been able to personalize my teaching more to the individual student through
the items that I have gained access to through the Internet. The students have been
getting more hands on resources during this time."
Students were being given more freedom to pursue topics of their own interest, which
were often sparked by some resource found on the Internet.
"It has made me a much better teacher! I have more resources out there on the
Internet. I have gained a better understanding of my students needs. They are
directing their education more than they ever did in my class before. I feel that I have
much better connections with other teachers from around the world. My students
have gained more of a world view of things, understanding other cultures and breaking
down stereotypes."
Another example is that in math classes, students were challenged to find ways of
expressing the data that they had collected instead of the teacher telling them what to
do. Some teachers reported that they were seeing their role more as that of a
facilitator, and that their style of teaching was becoming more investigative and inquiry
oriented.
"Much more innovative and relevant to student needs for the future. More student
centered and focused on investigative type activities."

Teachers also reported on differences in ways in which students were learning. In
some cases these changes were well underway, while in others they were envisaged
rather than implemented. One overall way of looking at the change in learning was
summed up in the words of one teacher who quoted the old proverb,
"Give me a fish and I eat for a day. Teach me to fish and I eat for a lifetime."

While learning in the past has tended to concentrate on assimilating a body of
knowledge (usually set out in a textbook), the Internet encourages students to become
seekers of knowledge and teachers the facilitators of learning in this new mode.

Looking now at some of the specific points made by teachers.
One overwhelming response was that the use of computers and Internet access was
proving to be highly motivational. For example, the ability to download an image from
a source many miles away fascinated students. Many were excited both by the
computer itself, and by some of the other indirect changes that were occurring as a
result of the technology available.

"The biggest change is new ideas in the classroom. The students are more interested
even though they are learning the same concepts they would have learned from the
book. It has a whole new flavor with different approaches that the students enjoy and
think of as 'new'."

A second major theme to emerge was that students were becoming independent
explorers and were taking more responsibility for their own learning. Teachers
claimed that the problem solving skills of their students were improving. Specifically,
the use of real data gathered by the students themselves, sometimes in collaboration
with other schools, has made a big difference in attitude towards math and in how
learning occurs. As students became more responsible for the analysis of their data,
they sought to make meaning of what they had found, rather than to follow a set
algorithm to come up with the right answer.

"Because we are collaborating with other schools, the students have a REAL
audience and REAL reasons for accuracy."

This theme was summed up by a teacher who said, "They will be doing more true
science, not just the canned stuff."

Students were able to take charge of their own learning, to some extent, by the access
to resources that were not previously available. In some cases these resources were
found and explored online. In other cases, they were available on CDs provided
through the Microsoft partnership.

Students were able to do independent research on topics of interest to them because
of access to information previously unavailable to small, rural schools.

Third, greater collaboration between students was reported by some teachers. Many
of the telecollaborative projects, as well as those found on place like the Geometry
forum, required students to work in groups to come up with a solution to a problem.
This solution would then be posted and viewed by students in other schools.

Students in some of the schools had direct access to e-mail, while others had to send
message through the teacher. In either case, students were able to reach out to the
world beyond themselves and their own community. To many of them, contact with
other schools in Montana was as novel as being able to communicate with Estonian
students.

Hence it would appear that students are becoming independent learners to some
extent. However, a caution was sounded by one teacher. He reported that students
are more inclined to explore and 'surf' than to specifically mine the resource for
information to do with an identified research question.

APPENDIX I
List of resources as given in response to the questionnaire.

*Graphics on assorted planets from Nasa
*Some free software for volcanoes
*Teacher help on math science projects
*Lesson plans for Science
*Drama plays for elementary students
*Live From Antarctica - Math/Science/Social Studies
Interdisciplinary unit involving experts in the field and studying Antarctica.
*Where is Roger? - Tracking Roger through the Eastern Hemisphere, we spent the
last semester tracking him through Australia and have contacted other schools around
the world who were also on the list.
*Geogame - A terrific geography activity for Middle School kids. This has been really
a challenge.
*Mayaquest - Students being able to interact with experts online in Central America
seeking answers as to why the Maya civilizations have disappeared. We are going to
compare this ancient civilization to other ancient civilizations we've already studied in
Europe. This study has involved quite a bit of research on my part and the project has
been extremely helpful in developing a bibliography and providing lesson plans and
online resources.
*Projects with classes in other schools in which my classes could become involved.
*The Geometry Forum through which we get a Problem of the Week and a Project
of the Month for the class or individuals to work on. The results are written and then
returned to the forum.
*Listservs that offer ideas and lessons appropriate for my students.
Listservs that increase my general computer/internet knowledge
*Lesson plans found while 'surfing'
*Images used for Science lessons
*Images of space objects.
*Projects from other teachers (Math)
*(Info. from a listserv helped me find) Civil Wars from an Iowan Soldier
*Images of many, many things of interest to my students
*I think that having contact with other teachers and exchanging lesson ideas to make
things better for the students (more "real-world" and more hands-on and more future
oriented) has been an invaluable resource.
*Lesson plans
*Pictures
*Personal contact with others.
*I have acquired access to math lesson plans on a variety of topics.
*Students were able to reach Santa on the Internet and receive a response.
*I have acquired the knowledge how to access whatever resource that I have a need
for.
*I subscribed to listserves on Middle School issues and kidcafe.
*Graphics, and text with graphics
*Ideas from a list-serv for classroom projects
*Data for telecollaborative projects
*Space images
*Classroom lesson plan ideas
*Ongoing programs.
*I have used images from space.
*I have used information from other teachers in the project.
*I also belong to a firenet listserve.
*I use weather reports.
*I read teacher interaction on the internet.
*Material (Mean, Median, Mode)
*Satellite & telescope images.
*US Government Res.(NOAA, NASA, NIH)
*Images
*Where on the Globe Is Roger Project
*Geogame project
*Edupage news
*Math and Science lessons from a variety of sources.
*Scholastic Central: a great resource for materials, authors, science projects.
*Dartmouth Library: Shakespeare
*Environmental gophers: gopher.econonet.apc.org
*KidLink